This summer has looked very different than I had initially planned, as I’m sure is also true for you. In a normal, non-pandemic world, my kids would be busy with various summer camps and spend one full day each week with their babysitter so that I would have dedicated work time…but this is not a normal, non-pandemic world at the moment.
Instead, the 3 of us have spent each and every day together, mostly at home with some pool days thrown in to keep us all sane. That of course translates into me not getting as much work done (like, barely even a fraction of it) as I had originally hoped, but I’m giving myself grace — as we all should during the year 2020.
That said, I have managed to write and record a few new tunes, as well as breathed new life into a good handful of songs I wrote in my earlier professional years. You can check out all of the latest songs over in the store, but I wanted to feature 3 of them here for you. Hopefully you can get some use out of them as we enter the last full month of summer!
Words and melodies have, for the most part, eluded me over the past 6 weeks. The best I could muster was an adaptation of Maggie Rogers’ “Give A Little” for bells, which I used in my livestream classes recently, but otherwise…nothing.
And then last Friday, our governor announced that all schools in Illinois are closed for the remainder of the school year. Even though I was 100% expecting this news, it hit me hard. I still haven’t told my kids, who are only 4 and 6…young enough to be content at home, but old enough to love and miss their school, teachers, and friends. Needless to say, the rollercoaster my emotions have been on plunged downward.
That night, I sat down with my guitar, and all these lyrics came pouring out, along with a melody to go with them. “It’s Okay Not To Be Okay” was the result, and I want to share it with you if you need a reminder of this message as much as I do.
Bonding songs are essential to my early childhood classes, because they foster parent-child interaction and help us wind down toward the end of the session. I wrote “I Love Your Toes” specifically for my baby (0-18 month) class, though I have most definitely used it with kiddos who are a little older.
I wrote the song “Love, Love, Love (My Family)” before I became a mom, believe it or not. This photo was taken just a few days after my daughter Mia Belle was born and completed our family; now this song is more special to me than ever.
I’m a worrier by nature; always have been, always will be. So when I sang along to Bobby McFerrin’s original version of this song growing up, I’m pretty sure I was trying to convince myself to heed his advice.
I love everything about this song: the lyrics, the laid-back stye, the harmonies, and especially the way it makes me feel when I listen and sing along. Turns out it’s a crowd pleaser in just about every setting I’ve used it, including my early childhood classes, performances, and music therapy sessions.
Welcome! I’m Rachel Rambach, board-certified music therapist and creator of Listen & Learn Music — educational songs and musical materials for children. I love sharing my work with you, along with my behind-the-scenes creative process, adventures in business ownership, and life as a mom of two little ones.
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Next month’s music therapy sessions, early childhood groups, or classroom music…planned for you in advance.
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